Bright lights, big casinos, world-class accommodations and Las Vegas Motor Speedway welcome the NASCAR XFINITY Series for Saturday’s Boyd Gaming 300 (4 p.m. ET on FS1). For the second-straight week Elliott Sadler has held command of the standings lead as the series embarks on the three-race NASCAR Goes West swing. Following LVMS, the series where names are made will head to Phoenix International Raceway and Auto Club Speedway (Fontana).

Sadler holds a three-point edge over second-place Daniel Suárez and he has a five point advantage over third-place Ty Dillon.

The JR Motorsports veteran Sadler has made nine starts at Las Vegas, posting two top fives, three top 10s and a pole. His average finish at Las Vegas is a 12.3.

Sadler is ranked seventh in average running position (8.5), eighth in driver rating (97.6) and third in percentage of laps in the top 15 (97.8%).

Notes: Teams in the NASCAR Xfinity and Sprint Cup Series will run different tire set-ups at Las Vegas this weekend . . . this is the first time Xfinity teams have run either of these two tire codes . . . both of these tires feature the same compounds run at Las Vegas last year, but have construction changes that bring them into line with what Sprint Cup teams are running at this track . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run liners in all four tire positions at Las Vegas . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

NASCAR XFINITY Series’ winningest driver, Kyle Busch, will return to Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 54 team this weekend and compete in the Great Clips 250 Benefiting Paralyzed Veterans of America (FOX Sports 1 at 1:30 p.m. ET) after missing 11 races due to injuries suffered to both of his legs in the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway.

“I’m really looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the 54 Monster Energy Toyota this weekend,” said Kyle Busch. “I can’t say enough about how much Monster Energy, JGR, Toyota and all my guys have helped me and pulled for me to get back into the XFINITY car. This is a continuation of my recovery since Daytona, and we hope to continue to add to my schedule going forward through the rest of the year.”

Busch raises the level of competition when he competes in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. He holds the series record in wins (70), poles (43) and top-fives (175).

Expect Busch to find his groove fairly quickly at Michigan, in seven starts he has one win (2004), six top fives and an average finish of 4.6. Busch won the Coors Light pole for this event last season.

Notes:While teams in the NASCAR Xfinity and Sprint Cup Series will run the same right-side tire code (D-4630) at Michigan this weekend, they will run distinct left-side codes . . . in Xfinity, teams ran this left-side code (D-4604) at Michigan last June . . . they also ran this left-side at Kansas last October . . . this is the first time they have run this right-side code at Michigan, though they have run it earlier this season at Las Vegas and Talladega . . . compared to what was run at Michigan last year, this right-side features a slightly more wear resistant tread compound . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Michigan . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

A $1 million prize is on the line again for the NASCAR XFINITY Series. In its seventh consecutive year, the “Dash 4 Cash” program is back and new tracks highlight its schedule.

For the first time, Charlotte Motor Speedway will host the “Dash 4 Cash” qualifier, which will determine the four eligible drivers that will compete for one of four $100,000 payouts throughout the season. Following Saturday’s Hisense 300, the four Dash 4 Cash events will include: Dover (May 30), Indianapolis (July 25), Bristol (August 21) and Darlington (September 5). At Charlotte, the top four finishers who are eligible to receive NASCAR XFINITY Series driver points will qualify for the first Dash 4 Cash race at Dover.

Notes:Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series will run the same Goodyear tire codes at Charlotte this week . . . all tires will be branded with “Support Our Troops” as part of the Goodyear Gives Back program . . . while these teams have run this left-side tire code (D-4426) at Charlotte since 2012, last weekend at Charlotte was the first time NASCAR teams raced on this right-side code (D-4640) . . . this right-side is a Goodyear multi-zone tread tire, which incorporates two distinct compounds on the same tire — one for endurance and heat resistance on the inboard two inches of the tread and one for traction on the outboard 10 inches . . . this inboard (Endurance Zone) features the same compound that was run on the same zone at Texas, while this outboard (Traction Zone) features the compound run at Charlotte last year . . . this tire set-up was first tested at Charlotte in December, and was confirmed in a March 10 tire test at the track with drivers Aric Almirola, Kasey Kahne, Martin Truex Jr. and J.J. Yeley . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Charlotte . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

Among the 10 NASCAR XFINITY Series races at Iowa Speedway, there have been six different winners. Of those six, only one is entered this weekend – Elliott Sadler. One out of 40 is pretty good odds that we will see a new winner at Iowa this weekend, but Sadler’s success at the 0.875-mile track might make you second-guess counting him out.

Sadler has made eight series starts at Iowa, posting a win in 2012, a series leading six top fives, eight top 10s and three poles. He also leads active drivers with a 4.6 average finish at Iowa.

Sadler will have his work cut for him to become the third driver in series history to win multiple races at Iowa (Brad Keselowski and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. each have three wins). Five other drivers entered this weekend have average finishes at Iowa inside the top 10: Chase Elliot (6.0), Ty Dillon (6.5), Regan Smith (6.7), Ryan Blaney (7.0) and Darrell Wallace Jr. (8.0).

Notes:While NASCAR Xfinity Series teams have run this left-side tire code (D-4546) at Iowa since 2013, this is the first time running this right-side code (D-4648) . . . compared to what was run at Iowa last season, this right-side tire features a construction change for better wear . . . this tire set-up was confirmed at a Goodyear test at Iowa on May 5 . . . Xfinity drivers participating in that test were Ryan Blaney and Daniel Suarez . . . this is also the same tire set-up that NASCAR Camping World Truck Series teams will run at Iowa this June . . . as on most NASCAR ovals one mile or less in length, teams will not run inner liners in their tires at Iowa.

Defending NASCAR XFINITY Series Talladega Superspeedway winner Elliott Sadler is looking to become the second driver in series history to win back-to-back series races at the famous 2.66-mile, high-banked, superspeedway this weekend in the Winn Dixie 300 (FOX at 3 p.m. ET) joining Martin Truex Jr. – who won three straight from 2004-2006.

Sadler is currently seventh in the NASCAR XFINITY Series standings, 49 points behind the series leader Ty Dillon. In 2015, Sadler has posted two top 10s and an average finish of 13.6.

Since 1992, when the NASCAR XFINITY Series debuted at Talladega, the series has produced 23 different winners but just two have won more than once – Martin Truex Jr. (three wins) and Joe Nemechek (two wins).

In his last four series starts at the 2.66-mile superspeedway he has an average finish of 6.8 and he ranks second in Driver Rating (110.1), and second in Average Running Position (8.405).

Sadler’s greatest attribute at Talladega has been ability to close out races at a high level. He leads the series in the loop data category ‘Closers’, averaging nine positions gained in the final 10% of races at Talladega – an average of 3.6 more spots gained than the next best competitor (Joey Logano, 6.4).

Notes:Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series will run the same tire set-up at Talladega this weekend . . . this is the same combination of left- and right-side tires that Sprint Cup teams ran at this track last October . . . for Xfinity teams, they ran this left-side tire code (D-4596) their last race at Talladega last May, but with a different right-side code . . . compared with what Xfinity teams ran a year ago, this right-side code (D-4630) features a compound change for better wear . . . earlier this season, teams in both of these series ran this left-side code at Daytona in February and this right-side code at Las Vegas in March . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Talladega . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

Weather:

NASCAR XFINITY Series Entry List

Winn-Dixie 300

Talladega Superspeedway – 5/2/2015

Entry

Car #

Driver

Make

Sponsor

1

0

Harrison Rhodes

Chevrolet

teamjdmotorsports.com

2

01

Landon Cassill

Chevrolet

GK Service

3

1

Elliot Sadler

Ford

OneMain Financial

4

2

Brian Scott

Chevrolet

Shore Lodge

5

3

Ty Dillon

Chevrolet

Bass Pro Shops

6

4

Ross Chastain #

Chevrolet

teamjdmotorsports.com

7

6

Darrell Wallace Jr #

Ford

Sponge Bob Square Pants

8

7

Regan Smith

Chevrolet

Hellmann’s

9

8

Blake Koch

Toyota

LeafFilter Gutter Protection

10

9

Chase Elliott

Chevrolet

NAPA Auto Parts

11

10

Jeff Green

Toyota

TriStar Motorsports

12

13

Mark Thompson

Dodge

Braille Battery & Grafford

13

14

Cale Conley #

Toyota

IAVA

14

15

Carlos Contreras

Chevrolet

BYB Extreme Fighting Series

15

16

Ryan Reed

Ford

Lilly – American Diabetes Association

16

17

Benny Gordon

Toyota

VSI and SWRS

17

18

Daniel Suarez #

Toyota

ARRIS

18

19

Mike Bliss

Toyota

TBA

19

20

Erik Jones(i)

Toyota

Sport Clips

20

22

Joey Logano(i)

Ford

Discount Tire

21

24

Eric McClure

Toyota

Hefty Reynolds Wrap

22

25

John Wes Townley (i)

Chevrolet

Zaxby’s

23

26

Kenny Wallace

Toyota

JGL Racing

24

28

J.J. Yeley

Toyota

Texas 28 Spirits Stage

25

33

Austin Dillon(i)

Chevrolet

Rheem

26

35

Chris Cockrum

Chevrolet

Advanced Communications Group

27

39

Ryan Sieg

Chevrolet

Uncle Bob’s Self Storage

28

40

Derek White

Dodge

Braille Battery / Grafford

29

42

Brennan Poole

Chevrolet

DC Solar

30

43

Dakoda Armstrong

Ford

WinField

31

44

David Starr

Toyota

Zachry

32

51

Jeremy Clements

Chevrolet

RepairableVehicles.com / AllSouthElectric.com

33

52

Joey Gase

Chevrolet

TBA

34

54

Boris Said

Toyota

Monster Energy

35

55

Jeffrey Earnhardt

Chevrolet

FW1 / Viva Auto Group

36

60

Chris Buescher

Ford

Bit-O-Honey

37

62

Brendan Gaughan

Chevrolet

South Point

38

70

Derrike Cope

Chevrolet

Nature Nate’s Honey Company

39

74

Mike Harmon

Dodge

TBA

40

84

Chad Boat

Chevrolet

CorvetteParts.net

41

85

Bobby Gerhart

Chevrolet

Lucas Oil

42

88

Kasey Kahne (i)

Chevrolet

Armour Vienna Sausage

43

90

Mario Gosselin

Chevrolet

CrashClaimsR.us

44

97

Peyton Sellers

Chevrolet

VroomBrands

45

98

Aric Almirola (i)

Ford

Carroll Shelby Engine Co.

# – Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate(i) – driver not running for 2015 XFINITY Series Championship Drivers Points